New Delhi: India on Thursday defended its abstention during the voting at the UNHRC on a resolution to probe Gaza violence, saying its position is not new and it has abstained on previous occasions also.
Asked about the Palestinian foreign minister writing to his Indian counterpart S Jaishankar on India abstaining during the voting in the United Nations Human Rights Council on the issue, MEA spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said a similar letter has been written to all countries who abstained.
"Palestine wrote similar letters to all countries who abstained. The position that we took is not a new position. And we have abstained on previous occasions. I think that explains our position quite clearly and addresses these questions," the spokesperson said during a media briefing.
Expressing "concern", Palestine's Foreign minister Riad Malki in a letter to Jaishankar said that India "missed an opportunity to join an international community at this turning point, both crucial and long overdue, on the path to accountability, justice and peace".
Both Israel and Palestinian group Hamas agreed on a ceasefire that came into effect last month after days of intense fighting in which around 230 people were killed in Gaza and 12 in Israel.
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Last week, India along with 13 other countries abstained from voting on the resolution at UNHRC to launch an investigation into alleged violations and crimes during the 11-day conflict between Israel and Hamas in Gaza.